LAKEPORT, Calif. – The practice of an ancient skill provided days of fun and cultural appreciation this past week, as dozens of Pomo tribal members of all ages took to the waters of Clear Lake to show off their tule boat racing prowess.

The 15th annual Tule Boat Festival took place Thursday through Saturday, and drew tribes from around the county and the North Coast region.

The festival celebrated past traditions set against the background of modern challenges, including climate change and protecting Lake County's rich natural resources.

The festival began in the summer of 2001 as the brainchild of tribal member and elder Nelson Hopper, who wanted to show the Big Valley tribal community traditional Pomo tule boat making skills.

That first summer, many people participated in the building of a boat, according to festival organizers.

It was so popular that the next year Big Valley decided to invite other area tribes to come and take part in the boat building, to race the boats, to dance and to share meals together.

Over the past decade and a half, the event has continued to grow and develop into a three-day festival of sharing traditional foods, hosting educational booths from local organizations including the Lake County Museum, artisan and food vendors, and, of course, the boat building and racing.

Big Valley reported that over the years the festival has drawn dancers from as far away as Chumash territory in Southern California.

This year, it included an appearance on Friday by Melissa K. Nelson, Ph.D., president of The Cultural Conservancy and a professor of American Indian Studies at San Francisco State University.

It also featured a visit on Saturday from Arctic Youth Ambassador Brianna Riley, who traveled from Kiana, Alaska, with her mother Martina to participate in the festival: http://bit.ly/29X5Prq .

The lead up to the races started on Thursday, when team members from Big Valley Rancheria, the Habematolel Pomo of Upper Lake, Pomo Nation, Robinson Rancheria, Graton Rancheria and Lake County Tribal Health met at Clear Lake State Park to collect the tules for the boats. Friday was the day for boat construction, back at Big Valley Rancheria.

On Saturday afternoon, it was time to put the boats on the water. Racers came from all age groups – from 6 year olds to seniors.

Broken up into age divisions, each group took turns racing out to buoys set up on Clear Lake and then back to shore.

After a few hours of racing, teams and individuals received ribbons, medals and trophies.
 
The full results are below, courtesy of Sarah Ryan, environmental director for Big Valley Rancheria. Ryan is a key event organizer who oversaw the Saturday races.

15TH ANNUAL TULE BOAT FESTIVAL RESULTS

Racing teams:

Big Valley Rancheria
Habematolel Pomo of Upper Lake
Pomo Nation
Robinson Rancheria
Graton Rancheria
Lake County Tribal Health

DIVISIONS

Girls, ages 6 to 8:

First place: Habematolel Pomo
Second place: Robinson Rancheria
Third place: Pomo Nation

Boys, ages 6 to 8:

First place: Habematolel Pomo
Second place: Big Valley Rancheria
Third place: Lake County Tribal Health

Girls, ages 9 to 12:

First place: Pomo Nation
Second place: Big Valley Rancheria
Third place: Graton Rancheria

Boys, ages 9 to 12:

First place: Pomo Nation
Second place: Lake County Tribal Health
Third place: Robinson Rancheria

Girls, ages 13 to 17:

First place: Pomo Nation
Second place: Robinson Rancheria
Third place: Graton Rancheria

Boys, ages 13 to 17:

First place: Habematolel Pomo
Second place: Robinson Rancheria
Third place: Lake County Tribal Health

Women:

First place: Graton Rancheria
Second place: Habematolel Pomo
Third place: Lake County Tribal Health

Men:

First place: Pomo Nation
Second place: Lake County Tribal Health
Third place: Graton Rancheria

Senior women:

First place: Lake County Tribal Health
Second place: Habematolel Pomo
Third place: Big Valley Rancheria

Senior men:

First place: Big Valley Rancheria
Second place: Habematolel Pomo
Third place: Robinson Rancheria

Team relay:

First place: Pomo Nation
Second place: Habematolel Pomo
Third place: Graton Rancheria

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.

COBB, Calif. –  The next Valley Fire Long-Term Recovery Task Force meeting will be held on Thursday, July 28.

The meeting will begin at 6 p.m. at Cobb Elementary School, located at 15895 Highway 175.

It is open to all members of the public.

Lake County Administrative Officer, Carol Huchingson reported that the task force meetings will continue to be scheduled on an "as needed" basis to ensure the county recovery team can be responsive to Valley fire survivors.

The format of the meetings will change slightly, effective with the upcoming meeting, in that a brief written status update on all aspects of county recovery activities will be available for the public to pick up, and the meeting will simply be opened up for questions and answers between the public and the various recovery branch directors.

LAKEPORT, Calif. – An evening of bluegrass and traditional American music on Saturday, Sept. 10, will benefit Anderson Marsh State Historic Park in Lower Lake.

The concert will begin at 7 p.m. at the Soper Reese Theatre, 275 S. Main St. in Lakeport.

Featured will be three Northern California groups that will provide a wonderful evening of entertainment: Blithedale Canyon from Marin County, the Thin Air String Band from Mendocino County and the California State Old Time Fiddlers.

Wine will be poured by Thorn Hill Winery, which will donate a portion of the proceeds from the sale of wine to the Anderson Marsh Interpretative Association. Snacks also will be available for purchase.

Tickets for this event are $25 and will be available before the event at the Soper Reese box office on Fridays from 10:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. and at the Travel Center, 1265 S. Main St., Lakeport, Monday through Friday, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Other ticket sales locations will be announced soon.

All profits from the concert will go towards projects, expenses and improvements at the park.

LAKEPORT, Calif. –    At its latest meeting the Lakeport Planning Commission approved a home project on the lakeshore and a temporary building on the grounds of Lake County Tribal Health.

Following a lengthy discussion at its July 13 meeting, the commission approved James and Cindy Shuell's application for a shoreline development permit, use permit and fence permit to build a home on a half-acre property at 2468 Lakeshore Blvd.

Associate Planner Dan Chance said the parcel has a fence, seawalls and ramps, but no primary structure. It's zoned resort high density residential.

In the 1980s the property hosted a boat rental business and there was an application for the property to operate seaplanes there. The planning commission approved a fence there in 2012, he said.

Chance said the Shuells were in the process of renovating a dock and pier when the project was brought to the city's attention. The county of Lake had approved the project as it pertained to the lake but it needed to be approved by the city because the dock and pier are accessory uses.

Part of the project is a new single family home, which is inconsistent with the current zoning and so would require a shoreline development permit, the sole purpose of which is to protect rare and endangered species, Chance said.

The Shuells' original plan had portions of the home and deck extending over Clear Lake, which had been a point of concern for the California Department of Fish and Wildlife – specifically as it related to the Clear Lake hitch – and the county, Chance said.

As a result, Chance said the Shuells revised the plan, which satisfied the state. He said the county hadn't responded to the plan revisions.

Chance said a majority of the property is underwater, with only a sliver of land that's developable. That area doesn't lend itself to a high density residential or resort development, with Chance adding that the property's highest and best use is probably a single family home.

The Shuells had wanted to keep a 6-foot fence approved by the commission in September 2012, but staff had concerns about visibility.

A compromise was reached in which the fence would be converted from a solid, 6-foot-tall wood structure to three feet of wood and three feet of hog wire, Chance said. They also will put in curb, gutter and sidewalk per city standards.

During the brief public hearing, the Shuells thanked staff for the help in working on the project, and said they agreed to the city's conditions in moving forward, including the change to the fence.

Commission Chair Ken Wicks Jr. suggested the area where the property is located needs to have its zoning cleaned up because it is currently convoluted.

The commission voted to approve the project with conditions including the upgraded plan for the fence, which is to have two electric openings and no foliage on it.

The commission also approved a request from Steven Rugg of Lake County Tribal Health for a minor architectural and design review for a temporary trailer to be located in the rear of the facility's main building at 925 Bevins Court for a period not to exceed three years.

Chance said the trailer had been placed without permits and reported to the city as a violation.

The trailer is being used as an office for a pilot program for senior injury prevention. Rugg said staff help seniors make their homes more accessible and safer.

According to the discussion, the trailer is anticipated to have four to five office personnel working there.

Rugg apologized, took responsibility for the trailer's placement and said he had placed it where a former “job shack” building had been located, explaining it hadn't occurred to him that a permit would be needed. He said the organization is now working on a master plan.

Community Development Director Kevin Ingram said, from an economic development standpoint, staff believes it's important for the city to be flexible, noting that Tribal Health serves an important community function.

While not ideal to have the temporary buildings, it is allowing Tribal Health to see what works best in its effort to serve the community, Ingram said.

He added that any master plan the organization comes up with will come back to the commission.

The commission approved the project 5-0.

The commission next meets on Aug. 10.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.

COBB, Calif. – The “Roadmap to Recovery” workshop to discuss “healing and dealing” at the one-year anniversary of the Valley fire will be presented Tuesday, Aug. 2.

The workshop will take place from 6 to 8 p.m. at the Little Red Schoolhouse, located at 15780 Bottle Rock Road, Cobb.

The workshop is presented by United Policyholders, a nonprofit organization that helps disaster survivors.

Property owners and renters whose home were destroyed in the Valley fire are encouraged to attend.

Speakers will cover topics including insurance steps to take before the one-year anniversary, extending deadlines and knowing insurance legal rights, and “healing and dealing” – overcoming challenges after the first year.

Scheduled presenters are Karen Reimus, a 2003 Cedar wildfire survivor, and Robert Scott and Laura Ives of Newmeyer Dillion LLP.  A question and answer session will follow the presentations.

Fore more information, visit the United Policyholders Web site at www.uphelp.org/NorCalWildfires , call 1-800-286-5631 or email Emily Rogan at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .

NICE, Calif. – A major Northshore businesses is under new ownership and management.

Grocer Larry Montgomery has sold Sentry Market to Mar-Val Food Stores, a Lodi-based company in operation since the 1950s.

Mar-Val Food Stores is owned by the Kidd and Rodacker families, who operate seven other grocery stores, primarily in Central Valley communities.

While a new name – Mar-Val Sentry Market – and management were in place by May, and the signage changed accordingly, Montgomery told Lake County News last week that the escrow, which was to have been complete on July 15, had not yet closed, but was expected to do so at any time.

Montgomery opened Sentry Market in May 1997.

He had worked his way up through the grocery business, beginning as a box boy with Safeway in 1960. Montgomery worked for Safeway for 18 years before striking out on his own, wanting to have his own store.

He would own several stores in Humboldt County and when he decided to open Sentry Market in Nice, he sold off all but one, a small grocery in Fortuna that he still owns.

When he first built Sentry, the area was farmland. Later, the WorldMark resort came in, with casinos arriving not long afterward, as well as a proliferation of wineries.

“I think the Northshore has really been cleaned up a lot through the years,” he said, noting Lucerne's fantastic park facilities.

Over the years, Montgomery has watched big technological advances take place in the grocery business.

Where once he had ordered stock with colored pencils and a handbook given weekly to a truck driver, the ordering system later began being routed through phone lines and is now online and interactive. “It's really changed,” Montgomery said.

Montgomery belonged to the Unified Grocers cooperative, to which Mar-Val also belongs. He said that after 56 years in the grocery business, “I felt it was time to just relax a little bit.”

He said the arrival last year on the Northshore of small box retailer Dollar General – which now has stores in Nice and Clearlake Oaks – didn't impact his business or influence his decision to sell.

“I'm not saying that it hasn't hurt businesses, but it hasn't hurt our business,” he said. “We just had more to offer than they do.”

He didn't advertise Sentry as being for sale, however, “I had a number of companies contact me asking me if I would consider selling.”

When he began to consider the possibility of selling to Mar-Val, he said he researched the company and visited some of their stores. While he had a better offer from another company, he ultimately went with Mar-Val. “I felt they were better suited for the community.”

Tyler Kidd, whose parents are among the Mar-Val owners, said they had known Montgomery for many years, and were aware of his involvement in the community. “And that's how we like to operate.”

He added, “Our niche is small markets, small community-minded stores.”

Like Montgomery, Mar-Val's owners supports communities, high schools and clubs, Kidd said. “It was just the perfect opportunity. It fit our plan.”

Casey Rodacker, another of Mar-Val's co-owners, said they already are implementing changes, including lowering thousands of prices, adding Harris Ranch beef, Clover Stornetta and Crystal dairy products, and $5 Mondays, where they will offer discounts on selected items.

They're also planning to expand natural and organic products, and the store's overall variety, Rodacker said.

Kidd and Rodacker said they plan to roll out the addition of the store's community card, which puts 1 to 3 percent of purchases toward nonprofits. Rodacker said they gave out $68,000 to nonprofits in 2015, and $250,000 since 2012.

That card is expected to be added soon, at which point organizations will be able to come in and sign up, Rodacker said.

In addition, they offer several $1,000 scholarships annually to high school seniors or young people currently enrolled in college. Applications will open for those in the spring, Rodacker said.

Rodacker said customers are giving good feedback about the changes. He said Montgomery had a great store and they're just putting their touch on it. “We don't want to shake it up too much.”

As for employees, Rodacker said they offered every one of Montgomery's employees a position. Some did decline.

Store Manager Jeremy Dodson, a longtime Mar-Val employee, estimated there currently are about 50 staff at the store, and they are open to new applicants, particularly for the deli, bakery and front end cashiers. People interested in applying can come in and get an application and ask for Dodson.

Longtime Sentry employee Kathryn Cole said she felt the timing for the sale was right. “I think the changeover was good.”

In selling, Cole said Montgomery “looked for someone he thought would be a family business just like him, so I think that was important.”

Cole, who has worked for the market for 16 years, said it took about a month to settle into the changes, with one of the challenges being the training of new employees.

She said the store needed “an uplift,” and that's what it's getting.

“The response on the store is really good, I think,” she said, noting Mar-Val also is very customer service oriented.

Montgomery said he and wife, Fran, miss the people at the store the most. “We really had a good group of people working for us.”

He said he hasn't really had enough time to sit back and say he's enjoying not going back to the store every day.

Montgomery, who lives in Lakeport, still has his Humboldt County grocery store, as well as another project – the former Sons of Italy building just down the road from Sentry.

He purchased that building in October 2014 and is still in the process of upgrading it for use as an events center. Montgomery said he's in the process of getting bids to pave the parking lot for the facility, which people can rent for weddings and other special events.

He and his wife plan to do some traveling, including to the East Coast, but intend to continue to make their home in Lakeport.

“We love Lake County,” he said.

Email Elizabeth Larson at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. . Follow her on Twitter, @ERLarson, or Lake County News, @LakeCoNews.